Reeves Gabrels American guitarist Date of Birth: 04.06.1956 Country: USA

1. Early Life and Influences
2. Active Years in Boston
3. Collaboration with David Bowie
4. Solo and Collaborative Projects
5. Current Projects

Early Life and Influences

Reeves Gabrels(born June 4, 1956) is an American guitarist renowned for his virtuosity, versatility, and originality. Raised on Staten Island, New York, Gabrels embarked on his musical journey at the age of 13. He honed his skills under the guidance of Turk Van Lake, a renowned jazz guitarist who was a close friend of his father. Van Lake's influence had a profound impact on Gabrels' early development.

Active Years in Boston

Before and after establishing a close partnership with David Bowie in the late 1980s,Gabrels maintained an active musical career in Boston. He was a member of several successful bands, including The Dark, Life on Earth, Rubber Rodeo, The Bentmen, and Modern Farmer. Modern Farmer released their self-titled album on Victory/Universal in 1993, showcasing Gabrels' distinctive guitar work.

Collaboration with David Bowie

Gabrels' collaboration with David Bowie propelled him to international recognition.He first met Bowie in 1987, and their musical chemistry quickly became apparent. Gabrels joined forces with Bowie and the Sales brothers (bassist Tony Sales and drummer Hunt Sales) to form the hard-rock band Tin Machine (1989-1993). After Tin Machine disbanded, Gabrels became an integral part of Bowie's sound throughout the 1990s, recording several albums with him. Notable contributions include "1.Outside" (1995), "Earthling" (1997), and "'hours...'" (1999), on the latter two of which Gabrels also served as co-producer.

Solo and Collaborative Projects

Gabrels has embarked on a prolific solo career in addition to his work with Bowie.His solo albums include "The Sacred Squall of Now" (1995), "Ulysses" (2000), "Live, Late, Loud" (2003), and "Rockonica" (2005). "Ulysses" was notably groundbreaking for its innovative release on the internet before being made available on CD the following year.

Gabrels has also composed soundtracks for films, including David Sutherland's "The Farmer's Wife" (1995), and worked on music for the Public Broadcasting Service (PBS). He collaborated with Public Enemy on the song "Go Cat Go" for Spike Lee's film "He Got Game" (1998).

Current Projects

Since 2006, Gabrels has been based in Nashville, Tennessee.He frequently performs with drummer Jeff Brown and bassist Kevin Hornback in a trio named "REEVES GABRELS & HiS iMAGiNARY FR13NDS."